I didn't much like the format, but it was hardly the worst. How quickly people have forgotten Masques...

On another note, I won a GPT today for Seattle with the following list:

4 Tattermunge Maniac
4 Figure of Destiny
4 Hellspark Elemental
4 Goblin Outlander
4 Boggart Ram-Gang

4 Tarfire
4 Magma Spray
4 Flame Javelin
3 Terror
3 Volcanic Fallout

6 Mountain
4 Ghitu Encampment
4 Auntie's Hovel
4 Graven Cairnes
4 Sulfurous Springs

SB:

3 Chaotic Backlash
3 Deathmark
3 Infest
3 Gutteral Response
2 Wild Ricochet
1 Volcanic Fallout

Matchups by round:

R1: U/W Merfolk (2-0)
R2: Blightning Aggro (2-1)
R3: Bant Aggro (2-0)
R4: ID

T4: R/W Reveillark (2-1)
Finals: Split; I take the byes, he takes nearly all the packs (57-3 pack split)

masques wasn't even that bad other than some of the overpowered uncommons.

on another note, I might be attending some gp trials. It's between faeries for me, which I think is fantastic vs gp trial players, and the b/w tokens deck that i've been crushing with on modo.

The whole set ate dicks. Besides, the addition of Apocalypse to IIP and Fifth Dawn to MMD basically ruined those draft sets way, way worse than OLS.

The morph mechanic was pretty awful IMO, but there were certain cards you could add to counteract going second, like Elvish Pioneer.

Don't play Faeries. Losing to Mountains is infuriating. Just play B/W tokens.

onslaught was a pain because u faced so many turn 4 "is it a skirk commando or a random morph" situations...

b/w tokens is awesome since it cannot lose a match to ******ed black/green decks which seem to be all the rage these days. Also I have not won a game in which my opponent has cast font of mythos, so I dunno. I also frequently lose to decks with overgrowth.

anybody online? started playing, 80% newb, trying to find a good strategy to get a deck i can mess around with and not waste much money

block deck:


2x Druid of the Anima
2x Elvish Visionary
1x Feral Hydra
1x Flameblast Dragon
8x Forest
3x Jungle Shrine
4x Knight of the Skyward eye (again should be 4x Cylian Sunsinger)
4x Magma Spray
7x Mountain
3x Naya Charm
4x Oblivion Ring
7x Plains
2x Ranger of Eos
4x Resounding Thunder
4x Wild Nacatl
4x Woolly Thoctar

the cylian sunsinger shouldn't be more than 4x for 1 tix so.. this is like a 5 tix deck if that.

So what sites would you guys recommend purchasing cards from? I've been to a few but i dont know how to rate their value.

Also looking for a site with lists of different kinds of decks sorted by style/color. googled this some but i've found a lot of dated material and it hasnt been very efficient.

So i've found some column that goes over top decks on the wotc site. Also managed to nail down the exact rules of standard vs extended decks. Still curious how the sideboard plays. It's a pretty ridiculous step going from dowloading and playing the free trial to actually playing a game on the full version.

Cardhaus is the local dealer here, but they ship worldwide and they're pretty big. I know the guy who does all the sales - he is a stand-up guy and is probably the most ethical and fair dealer in the world. He loses a ton of money by being a nice guy, but that's why I deal exclusively with him if I can help it.

Fast shipping, good rates, and an overall good experience. Highly recommend.

You mean you aren't sure exactly what the rules are regarding sideboarding?

After each game of a match you get to sideboard. You can take any number of cards out of your deck and replace them with the same number of cards from your sideboard (so you could put 15 in and take 15 out if you liked). After the match is over you have to restore your deck to it's original state (so you start each match always with your 'main deck').

Obviously from a tactical point of view you want cards that will help you against certain match-ups. So as an example, if you think you may play a lot against a deck containing a bunch of Artifacts and you are playing Alara Block Constructed, you might have 'Filigree Fracture' in your sideboard, if you expected the same thing in Extended you might have Ancient Grudge or Kataki War's Wage.

These type of sideboard cards are 'spoilers' or 'hosers' since they are designed to wreck a specific deck archetype. You could have more general cards that are good against a variety of decks (say if you thought a deck type was so prevalent that you had what were effectively 'hosers' in your main deck).

There are a few cards that allow you to look through your sideboard during a game like Cunning Wish and Living Wish - they aren't standard legal cards any more but used to be staples. Then you would obviously have one of a number of cards to fetch with those, and never sideboard them in.

Very occasionally it can be an idea to have a 'transformational sideboard' that allows you to switch from one game plan to another between games (can't think of recent examples but there used to be the odd combo deck that would side into a creature deck). I remember playing Skittering Skirge and Phyrexian Horror in the board of Illusions/Donate and playing those in the mirror as a transformational SB.

Your previous post you asked about buying cards, I think KyleB replied with a 'paper cards' dealer and you were asking about Online? mtgotraders is the biggest dealer afaik, have bought cards from that site a few times and it seems reputable.

Here's the newest deck that I've been playing around with in Pauper. It's not great, but it's frustrating to an opponent - Dominus Wins is probably infinitely better.

Enchants
4x clout of the dominus
4x quicksilver dagger (love this card)

Spells
4x lightning bolt
4x magma spray
4x spy network (I had a guy tell me that I should use brainstorm/ponder, but I think it's good to know how safe it is to drop creatures/dominus)

Creatures
4x Slippery Bogle (obvious target for quicksilver)
4x Noggle Bandit
4x Razorfin Hunter
1x Riverfall Mimic (probably should be more)
3x Mulldrifter (the deck has some blue and it's pauper)
2x Errant Ephemeron (needs to go)
2x Shield Sphere (same)

Obvious goal is to just draw, draw some more with a few chumps along the way. Again no where near 'optimal' but it's for casual, right? Has obvious issues with Burn/Control

I think peek > spy network. Network just seems terrible.

masques limited was quite good thx to spellshapers imo

Hear me out before you openly mock it. I'm new to this, but I think I have a reason here. I know the deck isn't great.

The advantage with peek is obvious - you draw a card with peek that you don't w/ spy.

However with mulldrifters/quicksilver and the desire to clout, I think there is definitely something to be said about setting your next 4 cards. It's also shows top of library so I know his hand for my next two turns w/o draw or shuffle effects.

I also have Panoramas in the deck to shuffle if I see 4 land coming or other spells that won't help.

if you are a competetive magic player you just dont use cards like spy network. i dont think it was ever cast on a pro tour (ltd. or constr.)

Ok, that's fine . However, do you see a major fault with the 'reasoning' that I gave for why I like it in this deck that is more designed to have fun and do something a little different than what everyone is playing (not well necessarily).

But I understand the cost of this is a card and only having access to 1 more card that I wouldn't have had next turn anyway. I'm liking peek w/ dagger resolved more. I like spy w/o dagger a little more.

Peek/Dagger = +3 random of top four. (+1 random card over spy next turn)
Spy/Dagger = +2 select top 4 + next turn knowledge (no extra unknown cards next turn)

Peek = +2 random cards
Spy = +1 selected card, +opp extra turn. +next three turn draws/shuffle

spy network is a card for fish, no offense

edit: without comboing it, it's basically like taking a paris mulligan whenever u draw it..

imagine you mull to 6 on the play and you go island+a blue instant. which one of the aforementioned would you like to have? (hint: it shouldnt begin with an "S")

I'd like the spy so I can concede faster :P

Point taken. I'm stubborn is all.

Alan, what do you mean comboing it?

On topic, anything else really that would work to put the quicksilver dagger. there's the scarecrow that makes 1 mana and untaps for 2 mana, but I feel that that is too easily killed by most pauper decks. I've thrown it on other RU guys w/ clout when desperate or even the shield sphere (lol - fish card I know)

Also I want to make an all morph deck just to use Scornful Egotist. I think the card is great.

Sleight of hand imo

Media, the problem with sleight of hand is that you really arent getting a cards worth of information. Maybe you see an important guy you save removal for, thats about it.

If you want to reorganize your deck, use ponder.

Also, I really dont think you want panoramas in this type of deck.

EDIT: The whole problem with your decks plan is that youre going to be casting creature enchantments on stuff, and other decks are going to insta remove and 2-1 you.

Empiregamesonline.net has probably the best prices of any online company anymore. They're based out of Northeast Ohio but have had tables at all of the last 4 to 5 North American Grand Prix and will be at GP Seattle. I can personally vouch for them as I know the owner of the site personally.